Three seniors from Stillwater Area High School committed to continue their athletic careers with college programs after signing a National Letter of Intent. The regular signing period for Division I and II football began on Wednesday, Feb. 7 while the signing period for other Division I and II sports began in the fall.
Anya Williams will continue women’s track and field career at the University of North Dakota, a Division I program, while Soel Riser is committed to the men’s track and field program at Minnesota State University, Mankato (Division II).
Williams placed seventh in the long jump and eighth in the high jump for the Ponies at the state track and field meet last spring. Riser placed seventh at state for the Stillwater boys in the 400 meters and also anchored 4x200 and 4x400 relay teams that placed 13th and 11th at state..
Tanner Schmidt, who set career records for the Stillwater football team with 1,626 receiving yards and 21 receiving touchdowns, is headed to the University of Minnesota Duluth. He could become the third Ponies receiver to play for the Bulldogs in the past decade, joining a list that also includes Nate Ricci and Cooper Yeary.
These three Ponies join 21 additional SAHS seniors who signed a National Letter of Intent in the fall. That list included Addison Finn (New Hampshire - women’s hockey), Myah Krueger (St. Cloud State - women’s hockey), Josephine Lang (Providence College - women’s hockey), Josie St. Martin (Ohio State - women’s hockey), Avery Irlbeck (Colorado Mesa - women’s lacrosse), Cassidy Keykal (Colorado Mesa - women’s lacrosse), Maycie Neubauer (Florida Southern - women’s lacrosse), Elsa Swenson (Colorado Springs - women’s lacrosse), Madeleine Reed (Cincinnati - women’s swimming and diving), Norah Naatjes (MSU-Mankato - women’s swimming and diving), Alex Boston (Minnesota-Duluth - baseball) and Owen Maslowski (Wisconsin-Parkside - baseball), Addison Coffey (St. Thomas - softball) and Sarah Dollerschell (Colorado Christian - softball), Shelby Barwick (Augustana - volleyball), Mackenzie Peters (Missouri Western - volleyball), Brooke Nelson (South Dakota - women’s soccer), Grace Schwoch (Bemidji State - women’s soccer), Amy Thompson (South Florida - women’s basketball), Dane Berggren (Concordia-St. Paul - men’s golf) and Wyatt Carroll (Colorado Mesa - men’s lacrosse).
Listed below are the responses to a short questionnaire completed by the athletes who signed a National Letter of Intent.
Soel Riser
College attending — Minnesota State University, Mankato
Sport — Men’s track and field
Why Mankato? — I felt like this school was the best option for me and will give me the best opportunity.
Major/academic interests — Communications and Media.
Other SAHS Activities — Football and basketball.
Most memorable experience with the Ponies — Winning the section championship this year in football.
Tanner Schmidt
College attending — University of Minnesota Duluth
Sport — Football
Why Duluth? — Great coaches and scholarship.
Major/academic interests — Business.
Most memorable experience with the Ponies — The crazy ending to this year’s game against Mounds View.
Anya Williams
College attending — University of North Dakota
Sport — Women’s track and field
Why North Dakota? — It is one of the top schools in the U.S. for aviation and I wanted to go somewhere somewhat away from my family so I could grow and become more independent, but still close enough to visit often.
I toured the school and immediately fell in love with the campus and the people there were really nice. Grand Forks has everything I could want.
Major/academic interests — Commercial Aviation.
Other SAHS Activities — Dance team.
Most memorable experience with the Ponies — Performing at halftime for the 2023 homecoming football game or celebrating with my track team after we made it to True Team state for the first time in five years.
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